Debbie Ingram (born 1962) is an American politician, who served in the

Vermont Senate The Vermont Senate is the upper house of the Vermont General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Vermont. The senate consists of 30 members. Senate districting divides the 30 members into three single-member districts, six two-m ...

from 2017 to 2021."Senator Debbie Ingram"

Vermont General Assembly The Vermont General Assembly is the legislative body of the state of Vermont, in the United States. The Legislature is formally known as the "General Assembly," but the style of "Legislature" is commonly used, including by the body itself. The G ...

. She lost her 2020 bid for

Lieutenant Governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

of Vermont.

Background

Ingram was educated at

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...

, with a degree in communication, and Fuller Theological Seminary, with a Master of Divinity. She also completed a fellowship at Cambridge University in England. She is an ordained

United Church of Christ The United Church of Christ (UCC) is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination based in the United States, with historical and confessional roots in the Congregational, Calvinist, Lutheran, and Anabaptist traditions, and with approximately 4 ...

minister, and serves as executive director of Vermont Interfaith Action."Debbie Ingram Makes Another Bid for State Senate from Chittenden County"
''

VTDigger VTDigger is an investigative journalism platform that reports on politics, businesses, events, and public policy of Vermont. VTDigger was founded in September 2009 by its current Executive Director, Anne Galloway, who was nominated for the "Verm ...

'', March 3, 2016. Ingram is a graduate o
Emerge Vermont
and th
Vermont Leadership Institute
She is out as

lesbian A lesbian is a Homosexuality, homosexual woman.Zimmerman, p. 453. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate n ...

2020 campaign for lieutenant governor

Ingram's 2020 campaign website for Lieutenant Governor articulated the following goals: bringing people together, rebuilding the economy, advancing social justice, making housing affordable, lowering the cost of health care, and combating climate change. In 2018, Ingram was endorsed by the Vermont State Employees Association, Vermont Conservation Voters, Vermont

Sierra Club The Sierra Club is an environmental organization with chapters in all 50 United States, Washington D.C., and Puerto Rico. The club was founded on May 28, 1892, in San Francisco, California, by Scottish-American preservationist John Muir, who be ...

, Vermont chapter of the National Education Association, Vermont chapter of

Planned Parenthood The Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc. (PPFA), or simply Planned Parenthood, is a nonprofit organization that provides reproductive health care in the United States and globally. It is a tax-exempt corporation under Internal Reve ...

, and Vermont chapter of the

National Association of Social Workers The National Association of Social Workers (NASW) is a professional organization of social workers in the United States. NASW has about 120,000 members. The NASW provides guidance, research, up to date information, advocacy, and other resources f ...

. In 2020, the LGBTQ Victory Fund listed Ingram as a "game changer" because, if she had won her campaign for Lieutenant Governor, she would have been the first openly LGBTQ statewide elected official in Vermont. Ingram was also endorsed by the Vermont Racial Justice Alliance.

Political career

A member of the Williston Selectboard, Ingram first ran for election to the state senate in 2012. She was not elected that year, but won election when she ran again in 2016. Ingram serves as Vice Chair of the Senate Committee on Education, and as Clerk of the Senate Committee on Health and Welfare. She also serves on the Vermont Child Poverty Council. In the Senate, Ingram's legislative priorities have included a comprehensive substance misuse program, expansion of child care, and increasing funding for mental health services. She has also championed greater inclusion of ethnic and social minorities in school curricula and Vermont's celebration of Indigenous Peoples' Day. Ingram has also introduced legislation to mandate more training on the appropriate use of force by law enforcement. In 2017, she was charged with

driving under the influence Driving under the influence (DUI)—also called driving while impaired, impaired driving, driving while intoxicated (DWI), drunk driving, operating while intoxicated (OWI), operating under the influence (OUI), operating vehicle under the infl ...

after crashing her car. She pled guilty, acknowledging that she has the disease of

alcoholism Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol (drug), alcohol that results in significant Mental health, mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognize ...

. She has been back in recovery ever since. She was reelected to another senate term in 2018."Election 2018"
. ''The Essex Reporter'', November 7, 2018. Ingram also served for six years on the Williston Planning Commission and six years on the Williston Selectboard.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ingram, Debbie 1962 births Living people Democratic Party Vermont state senators Women state legislators in Vermont LGBT state legislators in Vermont Lesbian politicians People from Chittenden County, Vermont 21st-century American politicians 21st-century American women politicians 21st-century American LGBT people